Long-term unemployment: millions of Americans have been out of work for months

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But when the coronavirus pandemic forced the city to shut down this spring, she lost both her job as an executive assistant at a slot maker and a guitarist gig at local shows.

Even though she scans job postings daily and applied for dozens of positions, she was not hired. The closest she got was the last step for a position at another slot company last month, but she was not selected. Gryczon is also trying to take advantage of a real estate license which she obtained almost two decades ago in a full-time career.

“The crazy thing is that I have a great CV and many years of really good experience working as a loyal and hardworking professional with letters of recommendation,” said Gryczon, who survives on the savings and to her husband’s earnings as a corporate sound designer after his $ 423 weekly unemployment payments ran out. “I just hope things start to change and jobs start up again.”

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, the ranks of long-term unemployed like Gryczon are skyrocketing.

Nearly 3.6 million Americans were out of work for at least 27 weeks in October, an impressive jump of almost 50% from September, according to the employment report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday. They now represent a third of the unemployed, against less than a fifth a month earlier.
And the number is expected to increase in the coming months, especially as hiring slows down. The economy added 638,000 jobs in October, which was more than economists had expected, but marked a slowdown in hiring from previous months. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell to 6.9% from 7.9% the preceding month.
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Yet nationally there were about 10 million fewer jobs in October than in February. And among the 11 million Americans who remain unemployed, the median duration of unemployment was 19.3 weeks in October. It has steadily increased since the start of the pandemic.

It’s worrying because Those who lost their jobs months ago may suffer from the stigma of unemployment, even though layoffs were widespread and were largely spurred on by state-ordered lockdowns, said Kate Bahn, director of market policy. work for the Washington Center for Equitable Growth.

“It’s going to be more difficult to get these people back to work,” Bahn said, stressing that they might be forced to take risky, lower paying jobs or they might drop out of the job market altogether.

The long-term unemployed run out of state unemployment benefits, which typically last six months. For now, they can participate in the Emergency Pandemic Unemployment Compensation Program, which Congress established in March to deal with the economic impact of the epidemic. It offers the unemployed an additional 13 weeks of benefits, but it expires at the end of the year. About 4 million people were participating in this program in mid-October, up from just under 2 million a month earlier.

Most long-term unemployed can then access their state’s extended benefit program, which can provide up to 20 additional weeks of payments during times of high unemployment, according to the state. Around 573,000 laid-off workers were receiving these payments in mid-October, up from 343,000 a month earlier. But that program ends in states where labor markets are improving more quickly, including Alabama, Missouri, and Nebraska.

Although New Jersey’s unemployment rate fell to 6.7% in September from 16.8% in June, Jalyn Anderson doesn’t find it easier to land a new job.

He was fired from his position as video art director for a fashion brand at the end of March, but received three months compensation. He is now in his last weeks of state unemployment benefits, which provide him with $ 504 a week, and has spent his savings to support himself and his 11-year-old daughter.

Jalyn Anderson, who lost her post as video art director for a fashion brand in March, feels forgotten.

Anderson said he applied for a variety of jobs on LinkedIn, but found that as soon as a list pops up, dozens of people apply within minutes. He had a few interviews earlier in the year, but has had fewer bites since.

“The job market is awash, super competitive,” Anderson said. “The companies are definitely retaining the positions they have abandoned.”

Worse yet, he fears Congress – and the country as a whole – has moved on as the economy slowly recovers. Lawmakers this fall showed no urgency to adopt another much-needed stimulus package to help the unemployed and the effort remains stuck.

“I feel a bit forgotten,” said Anderson, 47, who lives in Red Bank, New Jersey.

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